“I am the Alpha and the Omega, the Beginning and the End,” says the Lord, “who is and who was and who is to come, the Almighty.” (Rev 1:8)

Many study revelation and prophecy to gain special insight into the future. Naturally, people often want to know about their future. Some tap into the occult and divination to know the future (Acts 16:16-23). Others try to study the future scientifically in the field called “futurology.” Today, so many resources are being devoted to developing Artificial Intelligence to predict and know the future. Yet, despite all the advances in technology, our understanding of the future is pretty limited.

In truth, the past, present, and future are all important. Our past tells us where we came from, our present who we are, and our future the path forward. But in Revelation, Christ reveals Himself as the Alpha and the Omega, the Beginning and the End. He is the eternal one—the Almighty—who rules over all history—past, present, and future.

Today, we live in an age where the truth of mankind’s history is often obscure. For instance, textbooks today may teach planets, like earth, are products of randomly colliding icy dust particles that somehow (explained through gravity) began to stick to one another for thousands of miles in space (despite the fact there is scant observational evidence for this process). Similarly, textbooks today might assert man is the product of nuclear fusion and exploding stars that mysteriously created biological life. Out of the stardust, man was formed over billions of years. It sounds beautiful and exotic. As the astronomer Carl Sagan famously stated, “We’re made of star stuff.” Yet, the Bible seems to tell a very different story of creation through a Creator (Gen 2:7). So the Bible is relegated to fable, while our textbooks become divine revelation.

But it’s not only the past that’s hidden, our future is also largely sealed away from view. John wept much when he saw the seven-sealed scroll—containing humanity’s future—sealed away (Rev 5:3f). Man often worries about how history will unfold, but God is in control. If we have that understanding and faith, we need not be overly nervous about humanity’s future. At the same time, we must not become fatalistic or simply sit back and relax as we watch the world burn.

The reason God seals and reveals His future judgments and plans to His people is so that they will be watchful and prepare (Mk 13:35-37). If God simply said, “I’ll be back in 1000 years,” it’s quite possible we’d get lazy and complacent for 999 years, only to prepare the last minute before arrival (cf. Mt 25:1-13). God unseals and reveals His plans so that we can discern the time and prepare (Lk 12:35-39, 54-56). When we see the biblical signs of revelation appearing, however dreadful the actual signs themselves may be, they should instill a hope and a passion in the saints (Lk 21:26-28; 2 Pet 3:11-14).

Jesus prophesied that most people would be caught unaware in the last days, saying, “And as it was in the days of Noah, so it will be also in the days of the Son of Man: They ate, they drank, they married wives, they were given in marriage, until the day that Noah entered the ark, and the flood came and destroyed them all” (Lk 17:26-27).

Revelation deals with two dimensions of our humanity—physical and spiritual. When Noah prepared for the last days, in his time, did he prepare physically or only spiritually (cf. Gen 6:14-22; 2 Pet 2:5)? In the church, we often pride ourselves in our spirituality. But the danger that can be seen today is that the church is not only being attacked spiritually but also physically. When Jesus spoke of the signs at the end of the age, He did not only speak about spiritual aspects; rather, He spoke of famine, pestilences, earthquakes, wars, and persecution (Mt 24:3, 7, 9). We might wish it to be all just spiritual, but it doesn’t seem that way.

Gnosticism was the early church heresy that held an unbalanced view between the flesh and the spirit; it separated the two unnecessarily. But, in the church, we must connect them together. It’s not only inward faith, but also how we live. How we live, in the flesh outwardly, does have something to do with our inward spiritual life. And the challenges that we will face in the end times will not only be spiritual but they will manifest in the physical. We will not only be attacked spiritually; we will also be attacked physically.

All that being said, Revelation is not meant to be a catastrophic emergency survival guide on how to survive a nuclear fallout or a guide on how to prepare long-term storable food. Revelation is revealed to God’s church, which concerns the future of all humanity, so that the church can prepare accordingly. We need to read Revelation for wisdom, under the Holy Spirit’s guidance, so that we will know how to prepare. But we will not prepare if we are not watchful, no matter the time or season. So Jesus warned His disciples, “And what I say to you, I say to all: Watch!” (Mk 13:37).

When Jesus says “Watch!”, He is not only speaking about watching what is going on within and without the church body or in the world. He is also telling us, in Revelation, to keep our eyes on Him—the Alpha and the Omega. So the first vision, given by Christ to John in Revelation, is of Himself in all His glory.

We can see many things going on today in the church and in the world. But if we fail to see the one who calls Himself the beginning and the end then we have really missed the point of Revelation.

Revelation 1:13-16 reveals the glory, beauty, and majesty of Christ in rich detail. The picture of Christ in Revelation is much different than that of the crucified Christ. On the cross, Jesus was stripped naked, beaten, bloodied, and nailed. But in Revelation, Jesus is fully clothed from head to feet (1:13). On earth, Jesus did not even have enough money to pay the temple tax (Mt 17:24-27). But in Revelation, Jesus’ bosom is full of riches, like a “golden purse” hidden in a sash (1:13). Jesus’ head and hair were white like wool, pictured like the “Ancient of Days” in Daniel Chapter 7, full of the wisdom and authority of a judge. On earth, Jesus fulfilled the prophecy of Genesis 3:15 and the “bruised heel” by Satan. But in Revelation, Jesus has feet like fine brass, feet which have been refined through the fire. All these pictures and more, show us that Jesus was, is, and will be the ultimate victor. His countenance is like the “sun shining in its strength” (Rev 1:16).

If God’s people and the church keep their eyes on Christ, they will never lose heart in the midst of their trials. They will not worry in the midst of their hardships. They will not falter in the face of tribulation, even if found in exile on an island called Patmos (Rev 1:9).

May we continue to keep our eyes fixed on the one who loved us, who washed us from our sins in His own blood; the one who made us kings and priests and calls Himself the First and the Last (Rev 1:5f, 17). Amen.